Mothers' presence influences the reproductive success of their adult sons Source: Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology
New research finds that bonobo mothers take action to ensure their sons will become fathers. This way bonobo mothers increase their sons' chance of fatherhood three-fold.
Researchers found that while both bonobo and chimpanzee mothers would advocate for their sons in male-on-male conflicts, bonobo moms went the extra mile to aid their sons' copulation efforts.
This involved protecting their sons' mating attempts from other males and intervening in other male's mating attempts.
The bonobo mothers were also able to use their rank in the bonobo's matriarchal society to give their sons access to popular spots within social groups in the community and help them achieve higher male status, and therefore, better mating opportunities.